Female Coaches Offer Women Owned Businesses Guidance And Much More

As female business owners, we have both opportunities and challenges and readily experience each everyday. Despite recent numbers from The Center For Women’s Business Research that report women as representing 46% of all small businesses owned in the US – our success is often overshadowed by biases and obstacles. All the more reason for women business owners to stay connected, forge alliances and find solace in working with each other.

To stay competitive and become more business savvy, women business owners are turning to female business coaches as a practical, hands on way to get one on one guidance and establish a much needed support system. Having a professional female coach is a great way for us to manage difficulties and face our challenges with smart solutions.

As a business and success coach, Kathleen Schulweis, Ph.D, a Los Angeles, California coach, author and speaker, understands first hand the issues that plague women business owners, “My clients struggle to find balance in their lives. They also face challenges of gender bias in male dominated environments and they need to have creative and productive methods for responding to such biases. If not, they become victims of the biases, either because they do not get the deals or because they take a major hit to their self-confidence and esteem. “

The key to finding the right coach is remembering to make the process very personal. You have an individual style and personality. You'll need to find a coach whose coaching technique is complimentary to your style.

The right coach will understand how you think and how you process information to customize the coaching sessions and address your specific business needs. This maximizes the coaching experience for both of you. You'll be sharing a lot of information with her (both personally and professionally), so you'll need to be able to trust her implicitly.

Your coach becomes part of your personal success plan, so make the choice carefully. The cost of professional coaching varies greatly; so don’t let cost be your deciding factor. Schulweis comments “You can have a great experience with a $200 coach and a horrible one with a $2,000 coach, and vice versa.”

To make selecting your coach more meaningful, ask her probing and insightful questions. Being able to share similar life and career experiences is a great way to “feel out” if she is someone you can easily and comfortably talk to.

Once you’ve selected a few female coaches, consider asking them questions like:

• How would you describe your coaching practice?
  If her practice is very task oriented and you are more broadly focused, you could end up frustrating one another. You need a coach who works with your style – not against it.

• What is your specialty?
  Most women business owners find their way into professional coaching because of a series of inter- related factors. By focusing on a coach who specializes in these areas, you’ll see better results – faster. Schulweis offers “Any coach who tells you they can fix anything does not have your interests at heart.”

• Are you married, single, kids, no kids, etc.?
  As a thirty-something, married mother of 2 with a full practice, I would be challenged to work with a single, twenty-something year old coach who only graduated from college a few years ago. Clearly our lifestyles and our experiences – both personal and professional, are worlds apart. You’re bound to have a better experience with a female coach whose life style compliments yours in some way.

• How long have you been coaching?
  If her only coaching experience is a $99 "Coaches R Us Boot Camp", you’re in for a rude awakening. As a business owner, you have a complex set of circumstances that affect every aspect of your life. Find a coach who has “been there done that”.

• What do you do for fun?
  Seems like an odd question, huh? Not necessarily. Being able to share experiences and swap notes on non-business related issues helps strengthen your coaching relationship and brings a personal feel to the experience. Who knows, you might discover that you and she have more in common than you realize.   
  

Hiring a female coach to help you meet the challenges of being a woman owned business is an excellent way to build a solid business strategy. Be sure to take your time and pay attention to your feelings about her before you make the final decision to work together. Schulweis remarks, “If you feel you are being pushed into working together, I say run away.”

Pick a female coach who shares your outlook on life, your spirit of enthusiasm and your commitment to excellence. Choose wisely because the right coach is not only money well spent, but also worth its weight in gold

Olalah Njenga, senior marketing writer/consultant for Make It Write LLC, helps small business owners and solo professionals get measurable results from their marketing efforts.	Dec 03 - Female Coaches Offer Women-Owned Businesses Guidance Feb 04 - Don’t Make Last Year’s Mistakes This Year! Mar 04 - What’s In A Brand? EVERYTHING!
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